


The More We Get Together (the happier we'll be)

by Purplechimera



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, M/M, Marauders' Era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-23
Updated: 2018-11-23
Packaged: 2019-08-28 05:58:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,722
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16717715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Purplechimera/pseuds/Purplechimera
Summary: Sirius thinks Lily has a crush on Remus, so he decides to help James capture her heart. To protect Remus's secret, of course. Why else would he care?





	The More We Get Together (the happier we'll be)

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fanfic. I hope you like it, constructive criticism is welcome!

“So if Prongs and strip-tease for Flitwick, that will hopefully distract him enough-” Sirius paused and glared up at the underside of James’s chin. He was sprawled out, head in James’s lap, feet in Peter’s, with Remus between them, using Sirius’s stomach as a bookrest. Peter snorted into his hand, and Sirius poked James sharply in the ribs.  
“Oi!”  
“Mate, you aren’t paying attention.” Sirius folded his arms across his chest.  
“Yes I am!” James’s eyes were still focused on the group of sixth year girls across the common room.  
“So what’s your part of the plan, then?”  
“Er…”  
Remus idly turned a page in his book. “I’m sure you’ll do a lovely strip tease, Prongs.”  
“What?!” James managed to wrench his eyes back to his friends, running a hand through his hair.  
Peter dissolved into giggles. Sirius rolled off them and landed, cat-like, on the floor. Remus lifted up his book instinctively, then set it back in his own lap. “I’m not going to do your work for you, James. This prank was your idea anyway.” He stalked out of the common room, portrait hole slamming behind him.  
“What was that?”  
Remus, whose eyes had not strayed from his book, turned another page. “Sirius is upset because you were daydreaming about Lily instead of paying attention to him.”  
James opened his mouth to protest, but his eyes instinctively glanced over to where the redhead was sitting and a lovesick grin spread across his face. “She’s glanced over here three times since we sat down. And she hasn’t glared at me once! I think I’m finally winning her over.”  
Peter chewed on his sugar quill thoughtfully. “Because she might not hate you?”  
James stretched, one eye trained on the girls by the fireplace. “That’s the first step, Wormtail, my friend.”  
Remus sighed and wearily returned his book to his bag. “She doesn’t hate you. She just wants to be treated like a person, not a conquest.” He stood up. “I’m going to find Padfoot. I’ll see you at dinner.” As soon as the portrait hole swung shut, giggles erupted from the couch nearest the fireplace. James preened.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Remus found Sirius exactly where he expected-spread eagle at the base of the Marauder’s tree by the lake. He had untied his hair, and it gave the impression that his head was resting in a pool of spilled ink. Remus’s shadow fell across Sirius’s face, and he cracked open one eye.  
“Is he still fawning?”  
Remus shrugged and sat down on the grass. Sirius immediately shifted his head into Remus’s lap, and Remus’s fingers automatically began fiddling with the long, inky strands.  
“I just don’t know what he sees in her.”  
“You can’t control who you’re attracted to, Pads.” Remus bit the inside of his cheek, then swallowed. “And Lily has certainly become less hostile since the school year started. I think it’s because Prongs made Quidditch Captain.” When he noticed Sirius’s eyes were closed, he allowed his gaze to wander down the other boy’s body, and then out across the lake.  
“What does that matter?”  
“Because it shows that Dumbledore has faith in his ability to be responsible, regardless of our antics.”  
Sirius made a sound like a kicked puppy. “She’s going to steal him away from us.”  
Remus smiled indulgently. “Nah, James isn’t like that. It’ll probably be different for a bit, but if they stay together, we’ll basically have a fifth Marauder.”  
Sirius made such a huffing noise that Remus glanced down to see if he’d transformed without Remus noticing. He was still human, judging by the swath of skin exposed from where his shirt had ridden up. Remus forced his gaze back to the lake. They were silent for several minutes, Remus idly playing with the soft strands of Sirius’s hair.  
“You’ll never leave me, will you Moons?” Remus felt Sirius’s long fingers brushing against his wrist, then ghosting up the sleeve of his jumper. It was a habit Sirius picked up back in second year when the two of them had bonded over horrible parents and the pressures of societal expectations. Remus knew the hand wandering around his elbow meant that Sirius was feeling particularly insecure. He rubbed Sirius’s scalp gently.  
“Course not, Pads. James and Peter will get married to pretty girls and pop out a bunch of kids, and you and I will-” he bit his lip. Remus wasn’t quite ready to reveal that daydream. “We will live together as sullen bachelors, spoiling our nieces and nephews rotten and drinking firewhiskey.”  
Sirius reached up blindly and patted the side of Remus’s face. It took all of Remus’s self-control not to lean into Sirius’s palm. A breeze carried high-pitched giggling across them, and as one they turned toward the castle behind them. Lily was stumbling toward them, having clearly just been shoved by Dorcas and Marlene, who followed behind, cackling. Lily seemed to sober as she approached.”  
“Hey, Remus-” Her eyes darted to Sirius. “Oh. I thought you were alone.”  
Remus untangled his fingers from Sirius’s hair and leaned back on his hands. “The only guaranteed space of solitude I have left is the library. Not even the toilets are safe.” He looked up at her and, for a moment, understood James’s infatuation. The afternoon sun lit her from behind, her red hair alight with a golden glow. Her green eyes sparkled as her gaze shifted back to him.  
“No Marauder should be left alone with you, Evans.” Sirius’s voice was razor sharp as he sat up.  
Lily’s face fell into a glower, one hand on her hip. “Listen, Black. I don’t know what the hell your problem is with me, but-”  
“How can I help you, Lily?” Remus tried to make his voice as soothing as possible, and his hand gripped Sirius’s bicep instinctively.  
She took a breath and turned back to Remus. “Well, I was going to ask if you wanted to go to Hogsmeade with me, but I see that you're taken.”  
Remus flushed. “Um-”  
“What?! Who? Remus, have you been keeping secrets?”  
Lily frowned. “But I thought-”  
Suddenly, Sirius sprang to life, hauling Remus to his feet and throwing his arm around the other boy’s shoulders. It was quite a feat, considering the inches Remus had gained over the summer. “Remus is going home anyway, so he isn't going with anyone!” He dragged Remus back to the castle.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“So, who is it Moony?” Though he tried to sound casual, Sirius's voice was high and strained.  
Remus pulled his arm out of Sirius’s grasp. “Why did you tell her I was going home?”  
Sirius gaped at him. “Are we suddenly changing our policy on secrets?”  
“No,” Remus snapped, rolling his eyes. “I was going to remind her that I’m gay.”  
“Oh. Right.” They walked in silence for a while, until Remus’s words filtered through. “Wait-she knew already?”  
“I mentioned it casually last year. But she might have forgotten. It wasn’t a big discussion or anything.” Remus pulled open the front doors.  
“She didn’t know before us, did she?”  
“Of course not! Look, Padfoot, I don't try to understand your issues with Lily, but she doesn't know-”  
Sirius flapped his hands, his whole body vibrating. “I know she doesn't know about your furry little problem! Wasn't I helpful, getting you out of there so quickly so it wasn't awkward?”  
Remus stopped walking, but it wasn't until he spoke that Sirius noticed. “No, Pads.” His voice was low and earnest. “She doesn't know about your biological family. About what happened this summer.” Sirius stared, mouth open. “Isn't that why you're so agitated? Because she called you by your last name?”  
Sirius felt like his brain was rebooting. “Oh. Yeah.”  
Remus put his arm gently around Sirius's shoulders, and some quiet part of Sirius's brain registered that now he fit perfectly under Remus's arm.  
“We are your family, Padfoot. We'll get you a new last name, if you need it.” He grinned and winked, and Sirius was flooded with a warm feeling that was oddly different than the one he got with James.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Saturday dawned, and when the Marauders had safely tucked Remus into the Hospital Wing, they headed down to breakfast. Halfway through, they were laughing uproariously when Sirius noticed the sixth year girls entering the hall. He quickly schooled his face into a neutral expression as Lily approached them.  
“Has Remus already left?”  
James stared at her, slack-jawed. Sirius rolled his eyes and elbowed James in the ribs. “Yeah.”  
“Will he be gone all weekend, then?”  
Sirius shrugged, picking at the bacon on his plate. “Dunno. Sometimes he comes back the same day.”  
“Hm. Alright. Thanks, Sirius.” Lily gave James an odd look, then she made her way down the table and sat next to Marlene. As soon as she left, James started babbling, but Sirius wasn't listening. His mind had gone into overdrive, producing and then discarding ideas for how to distract Lily from Remus. He stretched out on the bench, resting his head on James’s thigh, and James instinctively began scratching his head with one hand while he gestured with the other. As loathe as Sirius was to admit it, Lily was very smart. Surely she would figure out Remus's secret if she kept hovering around and asking questions. Still, he couldn't do anything that would anger Remus, and Remus was friends with Lily for some unknown reason. Maybe it was the new-Prefect bond? No, they'd been friendly before this year. It didn't matter why anyway-what mattered was that Sirius figure out a non-anger-inducing plan to pull Lily's attention away from Remus.  
His pillow gave a sudden jerk and he sat up, glaring. James appeared to be reenacting the latest Puddlemere United game (again). James. James. Yes, James would do nicely as a distraction.  
“Prongs! Remember the Puddlemere-Harpies game we went to last summer?”  
James's eyes lit up, and Peter groaned, but he was smiling. Sirius watched Lily out of the corner of his eye and, just as he'd hoped, she glanced over just as James climbed up on the bench, reenacting the the epic snitch catch by the Harpies’ seeker. Lily didn't even roll her eyes. Perfect.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Moony? How do you become friends with a girl?” Sirius was sprawled across the grass, head in Remus's lap. A battered copy of Advanced Transfiguration rested open on his forehead.  
“Finally have someone catch your eye, Pads?”  
Sirius gagged. “Merlin, no. You're the only one for me, Moony.” Remus snorted. “I've just noticed that you're the only Marauder who is really friends with any girls. Maybe it's one of your wolfy powers.”  
A page turned above him. “Maybe it's because I'm the only one of us who treats girls like people.”  
“What is that supposed to mean?” He poked the spine of the book, but it didn't move.  
“Well, Pete basically faints any time a girl does more than look at him. James…actually, James acts normally around anyone aside from Lily.”  
“Really?”  
Remus hummed. “He's pretty good friends with Dorcas, actually. I think they bonded over quidditch.”  
Sirius chewed over that for a while, idly listening to Remus turning the pages of his book.  
“That's it? It's really that easy?”  
Remus chuckled softly. “Yes, Pads. It's that easy.”  
“Huh.” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sirius stood by the locker rooms, waiting for quidditch practice to be over. He could see James, broom slung over one shoulder, talking animatedly to Dorcas, and he grinned. James looked exactly the same as when he was telling a story to the Marauders, his dark hair flapping as he walked, arms gesturing wildly. Sirius snorted into his hand as he watched James fumble and nearly drop his broom.  
“Sirius? What are you doing here?”  
Sirius slung his arm around James’s shoulders. “I have come to help you, Prongs.”  
James blinked at him, stepping back so the rest of the quidditch team could file past them. “Help me? With what?”  
“Wooing Evans.”  
James immediately looked suspicious. “You hate her. And now you expect me to let you help me get in her good graces?” He shook his head. “No thanks, Padfoot. I don’t want to be involved in whatever prank you’re pulling.” He stalked into the locker room and shut the door in Sirius’s face.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sirius was not to be deterred, but his brother-in-arms proved equally stubborn.  
On Monday, Sirius nearly crashed into James in the entrance hall, approximately four minutes after Sirius climbed out of the lake.  
“Prongs! I just overheard Evans telling McKinnon that she wished she had some flitterbloom! I know there are some in Greenhouse Three, you could use the cloak-”  
“Padfoot, she said that because you were hovering around eavesdropping, and you smell like rotting seaweed and wet dog. If you don’t go shower, I’m going to need some for myself.”  
Sirius turned to Peter in outrage seeking support. But Peter just shrugged and stuffed a cauldron cake in his mouth.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tuesday found the Marauders in the library, when Remus and James were attempting to get to the bottom of a particularly frustrating arithmancy problem. Sirius, who wasn't taking arithmancy, seemed oblivious to their struggle.  
“Pssst! Prongs! Evans is reading a book about curling potions! You should get your dad to send her some!”  
“She’s reading that because that’s what our potions homework is about, which you would know if you ever paid attention in class.” James stormed off, disappearing into the stacks. Remus sighed wearily and closed his eyes, rubbing his temples with his fingertips.  
“Pads...what are you trying to accomplish here?”  
Sirius blinked at him. “I’m trying to help James become friends with Evans.”  
“Alright, I’m probably going regret asking this but...why?”  
Madame Pince glared at them, and Sirius dropped his voice, leaning in closer. “You said he needed to treat her like a person! James is always helping us get stuff we want. So he should do that for her too, right?” He chewed on his lip. “Am I doing it wrong?”  
Remus looked up, and Sirius’s face was so full of ernest apprehension that all the frustration he had melted away. “You’re right, that is something James does for us. But we are already friends with James.” Remus tapped his chin thoughtfully. “Do you remember, back in first year, when you and James were trying to...befriend me?”  
Sirius’s eyes lit up. He nodded vigorously.  
“Do you remember what James did?”  
“He kept inviting you to join us. And eventually you gave up and came flying with us and-”  
Remus flapped his hands. “Yes, yes, that part isn’t important. My point is that he asked to do things together. If you're honestly trying to have a go at this, why don't you try befriending her yourself instead of this bizarre, roundabout befriending through James. Or whatever you're doing.”  
Sirius sat quietly for so long, Remus started debating whether he should return to his homework. Just as he reopened his book, Sirius squeezed Remus in one of his trademark, full-body hugs, and left the library.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On Wednesday, as James was heading to quidditch practice, Sirius followed him down to the common room.  
“Lily! You should come to practice tonight-James is going to be trying out some really awesome new plays!”  
At this point, James had had enough. “Sirius! I don’t know what bizarre notion you have in your head, but I do not need you to flirt with Lily for me and I don’t want your advice! Please. Just stop.”  
Lily, who had been watching the two of them from across the common room, slowly closed her book. “You have been flirting with me...for James?”  
Sirius threw his arm around James's shoulders. “Well, yeah. It seemed like he could use some help.”  
Lily’s expression slowly relaxed into a small smile. “That’s...really sweet, Sirius.”  
James stared from one to the other, open mouthed. Then he shook his head firmly and pointed from Lily to Sirius. “I don’t know what is going on here. But I am going to be late, so we will resume this conversation later.” He quickly turned and strode out the door.  
As soon as the portrait hole swung shut, Sirius extended his hand to Lily with a small bow. “Are you coming, mi'lady?”  
She laughed, but gestured to the books around her. “I have a bunch of herbology work.”  
“You know, if you sit on the Hufflepuff side of the Ravenclaw box, the wind gets blocked almost completely. This time of year, anyway.”  
Lily looked at him with an unreadable expression, and Sirius wiggled his fingers at her. After a moment, she shoved her work in her bag. “Alright. I could do with some fresh air, anyway.” Beaming, Sirius linked their arms and strode off in the direction of the quidditch pitch.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

By the time James had debriefed his team, showered, and returned to Gryffindor Tower, most everyone was in bed. His head was full of images from practice: Sirius and Lily tucked against the Ravenclaw box, laughing. Sirius and Lily casting spells on each other, trying not to topple off the benches. It had been the least productive quidditch practice James had ever attended.  
The common room was empty, save for Remus. He was curled up in an armchair, books sprawled across his lap, and he was fast asleep. James smiled at the sight of how Moony the sight was, and then gently shook him awake.  
“Moony. Come on, let’s get you in a bed.”  
Remus stretched, causing the books to tumble off his lap and onto the floor. James waited as Remus grumbled and rubbed his face, then watched amber eyes come into focus on his own face. “James. Hi.” He patted the armchair next to him. “Sit. I was waiting for you.”  
James crooked an eyebrow, but sat.  
“I’m going to take a guess that you were upset and distracted at practice today.”  
James frowned. “Moony, are you sure you aren’t clairvoyant or something? You weren’t even at practice today.”  
A small smile played across Remus’s face. “Half the Gryffindor team came back complaining loudly about the worst practice ever.” He shrugged. “I know Sirius and Lily went to watch, so it wasn’t difficult to come to a conclusion.”  
A muscle in James’s jaw clenched, causing his teeth to clack together loudly. Remus reached out and patted James on the shoulder. “Sirius isn’t after Lily.”  
James glared. “You didn’t see them, Moony.” He ran his hand through his hair, and before Remus could even open his mouth, James was up and pacing. “I just don’t understand what the hell he’s doing! He knows I like Lily, and until last week he hated her! Even Frank made a comment about how heavy handed the flirting was, and you know how oblivious he is to everyone who isn’t Alice. They were laughing and casting spells at each other and-”  
“James.”  
By the time James had taken a shaky breath, Remus was in front of him, hands gripping his biceps. “Mate. You have got this all wrong.” Amber eyes sought hazel, and after a moment, Remus nodded. “Sirius is trying to help you be friends with Lily. Merlin only knows why, that part I don’t understand at all.” He paused, brow furrowed. “Actually I was hoping you could help me with that part. I think something happened while I was recovering after the full.”  
Eventually, James regained control of his legs, and he sank into an armchair. “I have no idea. That’s really what he’s trying to do?”  
Remus nodded and began collecting his books. “Maybe just...talk to him? He seems to be acting with her the way he does with us-you know how he is all handsy and over-exuberant. I think it’s Sirius’s way of showing you he’s accepted her.” He squeezed James’s shoulder once more, then headed up the stairs.  
James sat for a while, but eventually, he slowly climbed the stairs and entered the Marauder's dorm. Peter's snores greeted him, and Remus and Sirius were curled up in a pile on Remus's bed. He had an overwhelming urge to wake Sirius up, but he looked so content, curled up against Remus’s chest, and James was intimately familiar with how little sleep Sirius had gotten since running away from home that summer. So instead, he crawled under his own blankets and vowed to talk to his brother in the morning.

“Oi, Wormy! Is that my tie?” Sirius launched over Remus’s bed and swiped at the tie in Peter’s hand.  
Peter fell back onto his own bed with a squeak. “If it is, what is it doing all the way over here?”  
Remus surveyed their squabble quite like an indulgent parent, and his eyes drifted over to James, who was perched stiffly on the edge of his bed. James quirked an eyebrow, and Remus mouthed ‘talk?’ as his eyes flickered to Sirius. James shook his head, then cleared his throat.  
“Hey you wankers, break it up!” Sirius rolled off Peter, clutching the tie triumphantly in his hand. Peter groaned and rubbed his ribcage.  
Remus threw his arm around Peter’s shoulders and began herding him out the door. “Come on, Pete. Let’s get you some breakfast to soothe your wounded pride.”  
Sirius tumbled after them. “Moooooonyyy! What about me? Aren’t you going to soothe my wounds?”  
James chuckled softly and followed them. Maybe Remus was right. Maybe it was just Sirius’s way of showing acceptance...but he was going to take a day’s observation, just to be sure.  
By dinner, James was convinced Sirius treated Lily the same way he treated Peter-with all the touching and teasing that involved. He clapped her on the shoulder at breakfast, and teased her about the way she took her tea. Then he turned around and waxed poetic on the horrors Peter inflicted upon his breakfast sandwiches. During charms, when Professor Flitwick (wisely) broke up the Marauders for practice, Sirius had been paired with Lily, and he accepting her wand movement suggestions without any more fuss than he gave to James.  
After dinner, James, by some miracle, managed to rope Lily into a game of chess, and it was so bizarrely normal that he couldn’t do anything but stare at his charms essay for several minutes afterward. It was very late by the time he’d finished, and he quietly made his way upstairs.  
As usual, he was greeted by Peter’s snores, and when his gaze fell upon Remus’s bed, he found Sirius reading, a sleeping Moony curled up against his chest.  
“Pads-can I talk to you for a minute?”  
Sirius’s grey eyes flickered up from his book, then he he closed it gently. “What’s up?”  
“Thanks.”  
Sirius's brow furrowed. “For what?”  
James ran a hand through his hair. “For… Convincing Lily to come to practice yesterday. I still don't understand what the hell you're doing, but it doesn't seem to be malicious so…” he trailed off.  
Sirius shrugged. “She's actually quite funny, when she isn't angry.”  
A soft snore floated across them, and Sirius shifted gently and maneuvered Remus’s sleeping form so he was laying down properly. James seized the opportunity to pin Sirius with more questions.  
“Why, though? It certainly seemed like you hated her last week. What changed?”  
Guilt flashed across Sirius’s face, and he quickly turned to smooth Remus’s curls away from his face.  
“Pads?”  
“She was asking a lot of questions about Moony. She’s really smart, you know? I thought she’d figure out about his furry problem. I…” He twisted one curl around his finger gently. “I guess I thought I could distract her with you? But then it turned out she’s just a really nice person.”  
James closed his eyes. “Wait. Lily was asking about Remus, and you thought the best solution was to get me in her good graces? That doesn’t make any sense.”  
“But if she’s dating you, then she’s not paying attention to Moony!”  
“Mate. We are together all the time. If she started hanging around more often, don’t you think she would notice even more which days he isn’t around?”  
Sirius’s face fell. “Oh. I didn’t think about that.”  
James smiled and patted his brother on the shoulder. “I know you didn’t.” His gaze fell onto the sleeping boy beside them. “What kinds of questions was she asking? If she’s figured it out, we might have to do some damage control.”  
Sirius’s eyes closed, brow furrowed in concentration. “At breakfast on Saturday, she asked if he’d gone home already, and if he’d be gone all weekend, because Friday he said his mother was ill when she asked if he wanted to go to Hogsmeade with her.” He opened his eyes, pleased that he’d remembered, but James looked stricken. “What? Did I not remember it right?”  
“She asked if he wanted to go to Hogsmeade with her?”  
“Yeah, on Friday, while you were at practice. Moony and I were down by the tree and she thought he was alone but of course he wasn’t because I was there-” he puffed out his chest- “and she kept looking at me all weird but then after Moony said I was rude but I didn’t think I was rude I just didn’t want her to ask so many questions about him but Moony said that it was because she called me by my last name and now she’s stopped doing that for some reason so I stopped calling her Evans and now we’re friends I guess?” He tilted his head in a remarkable imitation of his animagus.  
James suddenly felt as though his whole world turned upside down, and then righted itself. “Pads...when exactly did you start feeling upset?”  
“I told you, on Friday-”  
“No, like the exact moment. Was it after she said your name? Or some other time?”  
Sirius narrowed his eyes in suspicion, but took a moment to think. “I don’t think I actually noticed the name thing until after, when Moony pointed it out. It must have been after that?” He drummed his fingers against his chin. “When she asked him to go to Hogsmeade. Because I knew he was upset about having to miss-”  
“Pads.”  
“What?”  
“Were you jealous?”  
“What?! No! I wasn’t…” he trailed off, his gaze falling as Remus curled one hand around his wrist. “Oh my god.” James watched as Sirius’s body tensed, and he knew that if Remus hadn’t been holding on to him, that Sirius would be flying around the room in a panic. “Prongs what am I supposed to do? Is this how you are all the time around Lily? This is terrible.”  
James stifled a laugh behind one hand, and patted Sirius affectionately on the shoulder. “Welcome to the club, mate. You should just talk to him.”  
“Talk to him?!” Sirius screeched, as quietly as he could. “How am I supposed to do that?”  
James shrugged, then grinned wickedly. “Just treat him like a person.”  
“Treat him like a- HEY!” He swatted his hand, but James, accurately guessing that Sirius’s need to let Remus sleep would override his desire to tussle on the floor, dodged the hand and made his way to his own bed. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The following weekend, Remus, Peter and Lily sat on the couch in the common room, watching James and Sirius play the most bizarre game of gobstones they’d ever witnessed. Peter had a large platter of sandwiches across his lap, and he offered one to Lily, then tilted his head toward Remus, though all their eyes remained glued to the two black-haired boys on the floor at their feet.  
“Are they fighting?”  
Remus scrunched up one side of his face. “I’m not sure, actually. This is new behavior.” Lily snorted from Peter’s other side.  
“It sure looks like they’re fighting to me.”  
Both Peter and Remus shook their heads, but it was Peter who responded first. “They aren’t insulting each other. They are...complimenting each other?” The three of them were silent for a moment, and confirmation of Peter’s observation floated up.  
“Lily, have you noticed how well quidditch practices have been going? James is doing a great job managing them.”  
“Remus, did you see that particularly excellent featherweight charm Sirius cast in class today?”  
“Lily, remember that beautiful vase James transfigured from a turtle last week?”  
“Remus, have you noticed that Sirius always cuts his boomslang skin so evenly?”  
Lily took a bite of her sandwich. “It sounds like they are talking to us, but I don’t think they actually are.”  
“This reminds me of when they get into competitions, but if that’s what this is, it is the most bizarre competition I have ever seen. And neither said anything to me about rules or prizes or anything normal like that. Pete?”  
Peter shook his head, shoving the last bit of sandwich in his mouth. Sirius squealed when his gobstones sprayed him down, and Remus automatically spelled him clean before receiving a lapful of pout.  
“Mooonnny!!”  
Remus patted him on the head indulgently. “There there, Sirius. I’m sure you’ll win next time.”  
Sirius continued pouting until the portrait hole opened to reveal Dorcas and Marlene. “Dorcas! Tell Lily about how wonderful of a captain James is!”  
James stood up immediately. “No! Tell Remus about how Sirius found you that book in the library!”  
Dorcas and Marlene exchanged glances and raised eyebrows, then Dorcas wrapped her arm around Marlene and guided her toward the girls’ staircase. “No.”  
Marlene laughed. “I don't know what is going on here, but I definitely do not want to be involved.” They disappeared up the stairs.  
Lily rose, dusting crumbs off her lap. “Right. I’m going to leave-”  
Remus clutched at her wrist, his voice a sharp whisper. “Don’t leave me alone with them!”  
With a grave patience, Lily peeled his fingers off her wrist while Peter made an indignant sound. “Remus, darling. You share a dorm with them.” Remus looked like she’d just announced his executioner would arrive in the morning.  
“Can I stay with you?”  
She laughed and patted him on the head. Then she kissed both James and Sirius on the cheek, which rendered them speechless for a blissful seven minutes. The moment they started up again, Remus retreated into the library.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After three days, Remus was at his wit’s end. James and Sirius seemed to recognize that they couldn’t keep up their commentary constantly, so they reduced it to opportune moments-namely, at meal times and in between classes. Remus deduced that this was because these were the times when they were most likely to come across Lily, and Remus and Lily started instinctively avoiding each other. Luckily for them, both James and Sirius took Muggle Studies while Remus and Lily had a free period, so they spent much of what used to be study time commiserating and trying to figure out what ‘their boys’ were up to.  
“Lily, I am about to jump off the Astronomy Tower. This morning, James complimented my sweater for Sirius.”  
Lily snorted and patted him on the shoulder. “Oh, Rem. I'm sorry.”  
Remus's voice was slightly muffled by his head being pressed against the table. “I just don't understand why they picked me.”  
“It does seem odd. No offense.” Remus waved her off with a hand. “James has been after me for ages-really, it was only a matter of time before Sirius started helping. But it's almost like Sirius…” Lily was silent for so long that Remus lifted his head.  
“Like Sirius what?”  
Lily's face flashed with pity. “You can't see it, can you?”  
Remus ground his teeth. “You're as bad as them. I can't see what, exactly?”  
“That Sirius has a crush on you.”  
All the blood drained from Remus's face. “Excuse me?”  
“He's acting toward you the same way that James has been acting toward me.” She leaned over and grinned. “You wouldn't deny that James is crushing on me, would you?”  
Remus shook his head. He picked up his quill and put it down. Then he straightened his stack of essay parchments. In a voice so small that Lily almost missed it, he murmured, “what do we do now?”  
Lily wiggled her nose. “We’re going to ask them out.” Remus blinked at her. “You do fancy Sirius, don’t you?”  
“Well...I...you...but…Ugh!” Remus shoved the stack of books he was arranging across the table. “I can’t do that!”  
“Why not? It will end their bizarre double-wingman situation, and we get dates.” She quirked an eyebrow at him, and after several moments of his jaw working silently, Remus nodded.  
“Alright. Fine. But I have no idea what I’m doing.”  
Lily grinned wickedly. “That’s alright. I have a plan.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Remus and Lily had been missing all afternoon, and James and Sirius were starting to get nervous.  
“Let’s just go check the map, Prongs.”  
“We’ll be late to Potions. And if they aren’t in Potions, we will cause a disturbance and check the Hospital Wing.”  
Peter groaned. “I bet that means I will cause a disturbance.”  
Sirius clapped him on the shoulder. “You always cause the best disturbances, Wormy. It’s why we’ve kept you around so long.”  
The three of them arrived unnaturally early to an empty classroom. They shifted and fidgeted, eyes glued to the door until the objects of their frustration burst in at the same moment Slughorn opened the door from his office. Remus slid into his usual seat next to James and pointedly ignored all attempts made to gain his attention. By the end of class, neither James nor Sirius were any wiser about the brewing of curling potions and Peter had been poked so many times he was considering heading to the Hospital Wing for some dittany. The moment they were dismissed, Remus and Lily practically fled the dungeons, followed closely by the rest of the Gryffindors. With defeated sighs, the remaining Marauders trudged up toward the Great Hall.  
“We may have overdone it, mate.” James shifted his bag, running a hand through his wild hair. “I think they might hate us now.”  
“They don’t hate us.” Sirius’s voice was quite a bit higher than normal. “Right? Moony can’t hate me.” He froze. “Oh god, he hates me!” Peter patted him sympathetically on the shoulder.  
“Come on. Hopefully they’ll have some chocolate cake so you can eat your feelings.”  
“Moony loves chocolate! I’ll never be able to eat chocolate again.” Sirius collapsed into Peter’s arms, and the smaller boy looked desperately around. After a wallowing for a moment, James took pity on him and hauled Sirius to his feet.  
“Come on then, Pads. I don’t think they hate us. Let’s just let it alone for a bit, yeah?” He threw one arm around Sirius and the other around Peter, and together they entered the Great Hall.  
The moment they crossed the threshold, fireworks and confetti started going off. The entire hall fell silent, and then the Gryffindor table began to tremble as what seemed like the entire house banged on it in unison. Marlene appeared, grabbing James tie and tugging him away from the door, her voice magically amplified.  
“Now if you feel that you can’t go on,” She spun him around and gave a push, and James stumbled into Frank Longbottom’s waiting arms.  
“Because all of your hope is gone,” Frank squeezed his shoulder and gently prodded him toward Dorcas.  
“And your life is filled with much confusion,” Dorcas grinned at him and decked James in the bicep, which sent him careening into Gideon Prewett.  
“Until happiness is just an illusion, and your world around is crumblin’ down, darling!” Gideon twirled James and pushed him toward the center of the table, where he was momentarily blinded by red and gold fireworks. They faded to reveal Lily, standing on a chair, holding a single rose. She began to sing.  
“Come on, boy, reach on out for me  
Reach out for me  
I’ll be there with a love that will shelter you  
I’ll be there with a love that will see you through  
I’ll be there to love and comfort you.” She held out the rose.  
James took the rose almost instinctively, mouth hanging slightly open. The hall burst into applause, which seemed to shock him back to himself. Grinning, he swept Lily up in a hug and kissed her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I’m feeling a little tired of PDAs, aren’t you?” Remus’s lips were pressed to Sirius’s ear. Sirius, who hadn’t moved since the singing had begun, jumped slightly, causing Remus to chuckle. “Come on.” He slid his hand down Sirius’s arm, twinned their fingers together, and tugged the other boy back out of the Great Hall.  
They were outside, striding across the grounds, before Sirius’s brain caught up with his surroundings. “Uh, Moony? Where are we going?” Remus said nothing, but he smiled.  
They made their way in silence, until they stopped in front of the Whomping Willow. Remus took a steadying breath and pushed a basket into Sirius’s hands. Then he picked up a rock, but just as he lifted his hand to throw it, Sirius grabbed his fist. “Moony. Are we going into the Shack?”  
Remus shook his head. “Just passing through.” He gently removed his hand, and threw the rock. They picked their way through the Willow’s frozen branches and up the familiar tunnel. But instead of turning up the stairs as usual, Remus turned to a door Sirius had never even noticed before. It creaked wildly, revealing a kitchen buried in dust. Unlike the rooms upstairs, which had been shredded with claws once a month, this room was mostly intact.  
Sirius followed along to what was apparently the front door of the house. Remus pulled out the invisibility cloak, gestured for Sirius to come closer, and threw it over them. Then he opened the door and strode out into Hogsmeade.  
“You aren’t worried someone’s going to see the door open to nothing?” Sirius whispered.  
Remus laughed softly. “I thought I was supposed to be the one advising against rule breaking?”  
“I-but...I’m just very confused! Usually I’m the one doing the kidnapping.” He shifted the basket so it wasn’t digging into his hip. “What’s in here, anyway? It weighs as much as James.”  
They passed the edge of the village and turned onto a small, grassy path that ran along a cliff face. “Dinner.”  
“Aww, Moony! You packed us a picnic? I didn’t know you cared!”  
Remus stopped, pulling the cloak off and folding it back into his satchel. “I didn’t. The house elves did. Be careful, the path gets rather narrow here.” They continued along in silence for a minute, until a cave suddenly opened up to their right. Remus ducked inside and reached for the basket. He pulled out several blankets, and the spread the largest on the ground. Then he began pulling out all manner of foods, arranging them on the blanket as Sirius stared, open-mouthed.  
“Moony? I-”  
“Sit down, Pads.” Remus patted the only open spot left, right next to him. Sirius sat. After a moment, he glanced over, and Remus was chewing on his lip. Sirius grinned and rubbed his hands together.  
“Well, Moony! It looks like you’ve brought half the kitchen, no wonder that basket weighed as much as James. We’d better dig in so we don’t have to lug it all back!” He reached for a pork pie, but a hand on his elbow stopped him.  
“Just a second, Pads.” Remus’s voice was so quiet, and Sirius instinctively turned. “I…” He bit his lip. “I hope I’ve been reading you right, this week.” He leaned forward and gently pressed their lips together.  
It took all of Sirius’s self control to not emit a high-pitched squeal, and he buried one hand in Remus’s curls. After a moment, they pulled apart. “Yeah, I think you’ve been reading me right.” He grinned as he watched a flush creep across Remus’s face. “Come on. I know how you get when you miss a meal. But we are definitely not finished here.” Sirius winked.  
They ate in comforting silence, Sirius tucked against Remus’s side. By the time they had eaten their fill, the sun had set, and they were treated to a brilliant view of the moon and stars out of the mouth of the cave. Sirius snuggled in closer and pointed.  
“Look, there’s me.” He pressed a kiss to the corner of Remus’s mouth. “Me and you.”


End file.
